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By Jon Weisman
The past 24 hours in the Dodger front office should be sponsored by Hires Root Beer.
The third and fourth people to officially join the executive staff since Thursday evening are Gabe Kapler as director of player development and Billy Gasparino as director of amateur scouting. Ken Gurnick of MLB.com has more on the newbie newbies.
"We're the Dodgers. We have incredible resources; we have high expectations. We need to be the best at everything." — new GM Farhan Zaidi
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) November 7, 2014
Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers
Moments into his introductory press conference as the Dodgers new general manager, Farhan Zaidi asked, “Is Steve Dilbeck here?”
Zaidi then pulled out a mini screwdriver on the pretense of being willing to fix the Times blogger’s laptop, a reference to Dilbeck’s mocking description of Zaidi as a member of the Dodgers’ new Geek Squad.
In fact, Zaidi has a well-rounded baseball background and philosophy, which he put on display today for reporters. Here are some selected quotes:
By Jon Weisman
Dodger president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman spoke this morning to reporters about his new hires: Farhan Zaidi as general manager and Josh Byrnes as senior vice president of baseball operations. Here are several excerpts:
“Where we are in the offseason, the pace of game is fast and nobody has any sympathy for us, and they’re not slowing things down to allow us to catch up.
By Jon Weisman
Well, there’s a word combination that will make your head spin.
But no, it’s not that the Dodgers’ top rivals are moving into (with apologies to the dearly departed Tom Magliozzi) our fair city. Rather, via Ernest Reyes at Blue Heaven, we find from the site Agate Type that more than 100 years ago, there was a Los Angeles Giants team made up of black baseball players — and future Hall of Famer Walter Johnson faced them in October 1908 while pitching for an Orange County team.
The game went extra innings, and Johnson (a graduate of Fullerton Union High School who had made his Major League debut at age 19 in August 1907) ended up striking out 20 in 10 1/3 innings of a 6-5 loss to the Giants.
Bud Clark allowed two hits in eight innings for the Giants, striking out 10.
By Jon Weisman
In between winning awards, the Dodgers’ top two pitchers have kept busy this week.
Zack Greinke is in New York for tonight’s Gold Glove award ceremony, and his wife Emily has shared pictures on Instagram of their travels to Rockefeller Center and “Jersey Boys” on Broadway.
Down in Dallas, Clayton and Ellen Kershaw hosted the city’s first Kershaw’s Challenge event Thursday, featuring guest musician Clay Walker, and there are photos of the event from Instagram as well.
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By Jon Weisman
Dodger president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has officially named his top two lieutenants in the front office, announcing Farhan Zaidi as the franchise’s 11th general manager and Josh Byrnes as senior vice president of baseball operations.
The 37-year-old Zaidi had been the assistant general manager and director of baseball operations in Oakland, while Byrnes was most recently executive vice president and general manager of the Padres.
“It is very exciting for us to be able to add two exceptional, veteran baseball executives like Farhan and Josh,” Friedman said. “Farhan’s primary focus will be the Major League team and player acquisitions while Josh will concentrate on the oversight of scouting and player development. However, they will both work closely with me on all aspects of baseball operations in our efforts to make the Dodgers’ front office and team the best it can possibly be.”
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Tommy Lasorda received the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award on Wednesday at the U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington D.C., as Andrew Simon chronicles for MLB.com. Above, please enjoy Lasorda’s speech at the ceremony, courtesy of Jeff Malet.
— Jon Weisman
By Jon Weisman
You thought Tuesday’s Gold Glove announcement meant that we were done with fielding awards? You thought wrong.
Adrian Gonzalez and Juan Uribe have been named winners at their positions of the Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Awards, the defensive award officially recognized by Major League Baseball.
Winners were determined using a formula that combines traditional defensive stats with advanced metrics, as well as data via scouting service Inside Edge.
Unlike Gonzalez, Uribe did not win a Gold Glove, but we talked about his fielding bonafides two weeks ago.
Adrian Gonzalez, asked tonight about the Dodgers’ early departure from the 2014 MLB playoffs:
“It still sits with us, at least with me. It’s not something you say, ‘OK, I’m over it.’ You have that feeling (that) we should have done more. To be honest, I know it’s a cliche, but until you win a World Series, you’re not satisfied.”
— Jon Weisman
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Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers
By Jon Weisman
Adrian Gonzalez and Zack Greinke have each won their first Gold Gloves as Dodgers.
Gonzalez, who earned two Gold Gloves with San Diego and one with Boston, had 12 defensive runs saved, tops in the NL and 50 percent more than runners-up Justin Morneau and Matt Adams. Gonzalez also tied for first among NL first basemen in assists with 118 and led in putouts with 1,318.
Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers
Greinke, known for years as one of the most athletic pitchers in baseball, followed up his Silver Slugger-winning 2013 season by beating out teammate Clayton Kershaw for the Gold Glove. Greinke led all NL pitchers in putouts with 28 and was a narrow second behind Miami’s Henderson Alvarez in range factor. He was also tied for third in defensive runs saved with five (Kershaw led with seven).
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Update: Gonzalez praised Greinke on a conference call with reporters after the awards were announced.
“We have a bunch of pitchers that can really field their position,” Gonzalez said. “Zack is one of them – he’s shown since he’s been here that his athletic ability is incredible. He can do anything – he’s a guy you can put at any position on the field and he’s going to do a good job with it. He’s a guy who has an incredible feel for the game. When he’s pitching he positions us – tells us exactly where he wants us.”
I asked Gonzalez if fielding skills were easier to maintain than hitting skills as his career marched on.
“The best way to describe it is nobody’s hitting the ball any harder (when you’re on defense),” he said. “Pitchers are pitching the ball a lot harder compared to when I first came up.”
“Defensively, I think, experience plays a bigger role. Learning how to position yourself, knowing where to be, not relying as much on pure athleticism and pure range. Wally (bench coach Tim Wallach) does a great job of positioning me.”
Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers
By Jon Weisman
As expected, Clayton Kershaw is one of three finalists for the National League Cy Young Award and the NL Most Valuable Player Award, the Baseball Writers Association of America announced today.
Kershaw is competing with fellow finalists Adam Wainwright and Johnny Cueto for the Cy Young Award, which would be Kershaw’s third in four years if he wins. That award wll be revealed at 3 p.m. November 12 on MLB Network.
In his bid for his first MVP trophy, to be announced at 3 p.m. November 13 on MLB Network, Kershaw is up against Andrew McCutchen and Giancarlo Stanton.
Need a refresher on everything Kershaw accomplished in the 2014 regular season? Click here.
Clayton Kershaw, bowled over with honors. (Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers)
By Jon Weisman
Citizen Kershaw has been honored thrice over by the Major League Baseball Players Association. Here’s how the press release sums it up …
Clayton Kershaw on Monday became the first player to ever win three Players Choice Awards in a single year as he was recognized by his fellow players as the NL’s Outstanding Pitcher and the overall Player of the Year as well as the Marvin Miller Man of the Year, which goes to the player in either league who most inspires others through his efforts on and off the field.
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By Jon Weisman
There is a new Dodger to announce: Ryan Jackson.
The team claimed the 26-year-old infielder, who is 2 for 24 with a walk in his MLB career, from San Diego and added him to the 40-man roster.
Jackson had his best minor-league season in 2011 with the Cardinals’ Double-A team in Springfield, posting a .334 on-base percentage and .415 slugging percentage.
Note: If you’ve never really seen MLB’s authentication process at work, the video of Jackson’s first career big-league hit above will show it to you. An interview with his parents on the day of his MLB debut is below.
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The day Ryan Jackson was born, Kirk Gibson hit a 14th-inning homer to beat the Cubs and @OrelHershiser got the save. http://t.co/nIdDSUkEAO
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) November 3, 2014
By Jon Weisman
The Dodgers have made a qualifying offer to Hanley Ramirez for the 2015 season, which he has until November 10 to accept.
If Ramirez declines the one-year deal, as every other player has since MLB instituted since this process began two seasons ago, he will remain a free agent. The Dodgers can continue to negotiate with him if they choose, but will receive draft-pick compensation (between the first and second rounds in 2015) if he signs with another team.
Meanwhile, Brian Wilson has exercised his option to return to the Dodgers for 2015, but Scott Elbert — designated for assignment in July before returning to the organization and ending up on the 2014 playoff roster — has become a free agent.
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The latest accolade for Dodger lefty Clayton Kershaw: FanGraphs Player of the Year. Kershaw edged Angels outfielder Mike Trout for the honor.
— Jon Weisman
What happens when three old friends in crisis fall into an unexpected love triangle? In The Catch, Maya, Henry and Daniel embark upon an emotional journey that forces them to confront unresolved pain, present-day traumas and powerful desires, leading them to question the very meaning of love and fulfillment. The Catch tells a tale of ordinary people seeking the extraordinary – or, if that’s asking too much, some damn peace of mind.
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